Expensive mistakes Iâve made so you can avoid them
Even if youâve got the cash to splash, you want to make sure youâre splashing it in the right things. This is all the more true when you donât have the cash to splash and want to keep your spending to the minimum.
As a student and now, an au pair, I donât have a pot of gold or a trust fund for my holidays. However, this shouldnât stop me, or anyone, from travelling the world and visiting nice new places. You just need to know how to do it. Iâve done it many times, but along the way, Iâve also made some expensive mistakes, silly ones, ones which you should avoid making too! Here are several lessons Iâve learnt from my most recent trip.
1. Donât give into overpriced restaurants recommendations
Sure, your trusted travel bloggers and travel websites recommended some truly amazing and authentic diners for you to visit, but the fact that they can afford it - if they werenât being sponsored or gifted - doesnât mean it is the best choice for your budget. There are many equally authentic and delicious local foods out there. Why, sometimes the cheaper it is, the better! Think about it, if it is so authentically local, would the people living there be willing to pay an extortionate amount for something they like to have every day? Would you be willing to pay ÂŁ20 for a simple fish and chips in your local chippy? Perhaps not.
If you are dying to go there, go, but make sure you research and google the restaurant before you do. Have a look at its menu and see if it is worth the price, in your opinion. Ideally, this should be done before your trip, especially before you get hungry because, trust me, when youâre hungry, you make some irrational decisions and end up settling for something so over your budget that as soon as you have your first bite, youâd regret.
It all boils down to what dining experience you are looking for. If you are looking for a specific dish, Iâm sure many restaurants do it. (eg. you can find tagliatelle al ragu almost everywhere in Bologna, from 6/7⏠to 15/20âŹ. The difference is the atmosphere, the setting and the location of the restaurant.
Ask a local for recommendations, that could be your Airbnb/ Couchsurfing host, a local tour guide or a random stranger on the street! There are also many travel groups on facebook where you can join for travellers like yourself to recommend and seek recommendations.
2. If youâre really on a tight budget, bring your own snacks/ shop from (super)markets.
This sounds like the most tragic thing ever but there is only so much you need to try in one place. Bringing snacks/ cooking your own meals will help you avoid spending unnecessary money on food and put those towards activities you could do whilst youâre there, or maybe another holiday perhaps?
Join a free walking tour. Usually, the guides would take you through areas which restaurants that they would recommend, so this could be a way of ticking things off/ adding things onto your list. If they donât or if you want more, you could always ask them during/ at the end of the tour!
3. Skip breakfast
Usually, breakfast is the most important meal of the day. For some reason, I always wake up starving. However, when youâre travelling on a budget, you probably donât have the luxury to have a full English or an avocado toast every single day.
If you donât want to skip it entirely, get a pastry + coffee on the go. Theyâre usually pretty cheap. I got one for 1,20⏠in Naples but they shouldnât cost more than 3/4⏠max anyways.
If you can brave it for a couple of hours, then treat yourself to a bigger lunch (brunch). Combine both meals so that you spend less than you would if you were to buy both separately.
4. Aperitif/ aperitivo/ apero
Instead of dinner, act local and opt for an aperitive! This basically means you buy a drink and it usually comes with food. This could vary from finger food to a buffet worth of choices! It is a very economical and fun way to spend your evening without starving yourself!
One thing if youâre alone and itâs a buffet type aperitive. Make sure you do not leave your drink unattended somewhere far away from where you are going to get food. I just donât trust strangers, not all of them. I also get that taking your drink with you may 1) be inconvenient, 2) seems suspicious. If you must leave it on the table, sit somewhere where itâs easy for you to keep an eye on your drink and/or other possessions, when youâre up and about.
I wasted most of my delicious frozen daiquiri out of fear of being spiked, even though he probably didnât. Nonetheless, itâs always better to be safe than sorry.
5. Join a free walking tour
I absolutely love free walking tours. It allows me to sieve out what I want to do or see in the city, as they usually cover most of the main attractions and things on everyoneâs to-do list. I always book onto one early in the morning on the first day if I can, so that I could decide earlier on what is worth my time and what isnât. Whilst most walking tours only take you to the outside of monuments and cathedrals, the guides usually provide a very detailed description of the places, allowing you to decide whether you want to revisit it at some point during your stay in the city. My favourite tour company is Sandemans Tour. They cover most big European cities and a few in the states too. Their guides are always energetic and enthusiastic!Â
It is a free tour in the sense that you are not obliged to pay at the end of the tour. But I always tip because I usually enjoy it. And in the words of our last tour guide in Seville, he says âRemember that time you paid ÂŁ5/7 to see an Adam Sandlerâs movie in the cinema for an hour or two. Think about how much you enjoyed it, and compare it with this tour.â At the end of the day, this is their job, this is their way of making a living. Remember.
















